I am from Portugal and I work with car to make tests in roads.
This car have many equipment, as laptop and a Bluetooth gps receiver.

1 - Can you tell me what are the best gps (Bluetooth, or usb) receiver that gives the best accuracy?
Imagine that I make a test in a road, then after some months and with resurfacing road I need to go there and find the place with an error of 2 or 3 m?

2 - Do you know a software that you can enter many coordinates (each one is a test that i saved the gps coordinates) and the software guides you to all test locations?
I have a software from a machine that saves the gps location each test. I would like to have a software that permit enter those coordinates and take me the same places that I had done test before. I don't care a map behind it, only an arrow to guide me to the next point.

It's biggest advantage is its static accuracy. That is at least partly because it can see the GLONASS satellites as well as the American GPS satellites.

For USB consider the Globalsat BU353-S4. Make sure you get the S4 version. If you want GLONASS and GPS look at Holux M-215PLUS.

You can download Microsoft AutoRoute for a free trial. It can be difficult to get some receivers to work with it but it's free to try so if it doesn't work you don't lose anything. It will give you an idea if you want that kind of software or something different.

...ken...

SpadesFlush

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ken in Regina

...

You can download Microsoft AutoRoute for a free trial. It can be difficult to get some receivers to work with it but it's free to try so if it doesn't work you don't lose anything. It will give you an idea if you want that kind of software or something different.

...ken...

Agree with Ken with a slight addendum with respect to Microsoft AutoRoute. Yes, a free trial is available but it is for A/R 2013. With some luck and a good search engine, you might be able to find a deeply-discounted AutoRoute 2010 which will work equally well with the GPS antennae that Ken mentions. I doubt there is anything in A/R 2013 that is not in A/R 2010 that you would need. I have both but I still stick with A/R 2010. The main difference, irrelevant to your use I think, is that A/R 2013 covers more countries and may have slightly fresher road maps where the country was "covered" in 2010.

Hi people
Thanks for your precious help.
I am reading a lot and seems I will change mine BT-359W for a GLO gps.

As I told in last message, I still with doubts,

1 - If I have a gpx file (with points) I can load it in a software and it drives me to all points or only to the end?

2 - And if I have an excel table with coordinates from my points, what software can travel me point after point?

I can share with you a gpx file or excel point and if you dont mind show me some screenshots how to do it

Many thanks
Carlos

Boyd

Just looking back at your original post.... I would not necessarily expect 2-3 meter accuracy with the GLO (or any consumer GPS). 5m is more typical. The real strength of the GLO seems to be its accuracy in static use - where you let it sit stationary in the same spot for a long time. The other strength is that it provides 10 position updates per second, which makes it suited for use in airplanes or race cars that travel at a high rate of speed. But not all software will work properly with the 10hz refresh rate.

I'm not quite clear about what you want your software to do, sorry. You might take a look at GlobalMapper. It can certainly import data from .gpx and excel files. It can also connect with the GLO or other external GPS devices and record your positon and track. You can download the free demo version and give it a try, it is fully functional but cannot export data. It is rather expensive however and is really a full-featured GIS (Geographic Information Systems) package, so it might be more than you need.

Globalmapper is not navigation software, so it cannot "take you there" if you mean that you want the computer to tell you when to turn and where to stop. It can show the points you have saved though and you can see your position on the screen.

Maybe something as simple as Garmin's discontinued nRoute program would do what you want. It will open .gpx files and you can create a route that should guide you to each point. It's a free download here, so give it a try: http://gawisp.com/perry/nroute/nRoute_276.exe

I don't think it will open an excel file, but there are a variety of ways to convert that to .gpx such as http://www.gpsbabel.org

Ken in Regina

cpalha,

If you already have a USB GPS receiver that works, I still think you should download the free trial of Microsoft AutoRoute. You can enter your coordinates into it to make "waypoints" or "pushpins" as they are called in AutoRoute. Then you can ask AutoRoute to guide you to each of these locations. You can ask it for guidance to each one individually from where you are at that moment. Or you can ask it to make a route that will guide you to many of them in a good order.

To use navigation software like AutoRoute it is necessary to have a map installed in the navigation software. AutoRoute comes with a map of most of Europe so I think you will find it contains most of the roads you will need for guidance to the coordinates you need to visit.

As you are visiting new coordinates you can ask AutoRoute to create a "pushpin" for the location you are currently sitting at and it will be saved in AutoRoute for you to return to at other times.

I think you can use the Import Data wizard to import Excel data if you already have many coordinates in Excel.

I am not trying to make you use AutoRoute as a permanent solution. It is just an example of navigation software that is available to purchase at reasonable prices. I recommend it to try because it is free to try for 30 days. And it has the functions I think you are asking for. And it should work with the GPS receiver you already have. So the whole trial is for free.

After you try it out you can see what things you want differently and tell us in here. Then we can direct you to software that might work better for you.

...ken...

cpalha

Hi Boyd

The link for nRoute is an update and give me an error because I dont have last version from nRoute instaled. I found others in google, but they are the same update.

Some years ago, before the small gps receiver I used this Leica SR20 GPS Receiver 2010 for acquiring gps coordinates, but were difficult in that time to work and loses easily the signal in the road with some trees. What are your opinion as a gps specialist. This equipment is until now in a box.

That will install a crude world map on your computer, and I think you will then be able to install nRoute. The error message about the "update" is actually bogus. That download includes the full program, but it won't install unless it sees a Garmin "product" on your computer.

Thanks, but I am certainly not a "gps specialist". I am not familiar with that Leica device, sorry.

cpalha

Hi Ken

I had download the Micrsosoft Autoroute and seems will work I can upload a table with coordinates at seems it will drive me all points. Tomorrow with gps i will test.
The Autoroute has the problem only 14 days trial and it is very heavy...

Thanks

Best regards
Carlos

Ken in Regina

Quote:

Originally Posted by cpalha

Hi Ken

I had download the Micrsosoft Autoroute and seems will work I can upload a table with coordinates at seems it will drive me all points. Tomorrow with gps i will test.
The Autoroute has the problem only 14 days trial and it is very heavy...

Thanks

Best regards
Carlos

Yes, it is a large download and takes much space on the hard drive. But that is because it includes all the map data for so much of Europe. Any software like it will also take a big download and much disk space because of map data.

If you do not want to take all that space you must trade that for more work and learning to make nRoute work.

To install nRoute you must first install some other Garmin software. It was already suggested that you can download and install Garmin Basecamp (it is free).

Once Basecamp is installed you can install nRoute. You can get a copy here. 2.76 is the last one made but you might try an older one if there is a language you are more comfortable with than English.

Once nRoute is installed you will need some sort of maps to use it best. You can find free maps of Portugal here to download. Just scroll down and when you see the Portugal line click the download link in the "Mapsource/Basecamp" column. This download is

To use nRoute with your current GPS receiver you will need to install a GPSGate Express. This is software to translate the data from your GPS into a Garmin format for nRoute to understand.

Once you have nRoute installed and working with your maps and GPS receiver you will need to convert your Excel spreadsheet into GPX format to use in nRoute. You can do that at the GPS Visualizer here.

Or ..... because you already have AutoRoute downloaded and installed and working you can just pay a small amount to buy a license for it and keep using it. You do not need to download it again, just go to the Help menu and find out the place to buy it online.

If there are very specific things that you do not like about AutoRoute or that you need and AutoRoute does not have, please ask those specific questions here and we will help get you something better.

I don't know if nRoute is any better for you and it is much more work.

I hope this helps.

...ken...

Boyd

If you want to use Autoroute and are still planning to buy the GLO, then I suggest you get the GLO while the free trial of AutoRoute is still active. As mentioned above, I'm not sure that it is compatible and it would be better to find this out before you buy the software.

cpalha

Hi Ken

More specific is difficult...

Thanks a lot for your help in use nRoute.

Hi Boyd, first I will do tests with mine actual gps BT-359W, then is only increase accuracy with garmin Glo.